Sexting

Sexting is the term used to describe when someone makes and shares explicit pictures or videos of themselves, their friends or their boyfriend/ girlfriend. Under the UK Sexual Offences Act, it is an offence for anyone to be making or distributing indecent images and videos of anyone under the age of 18.

It is key that schools, youth and similar organisations educate young people on sexting, and more generally on the wider issue of potential misuse of technology and what can happen when technology is misused deliberately or accidentally. Many young people often do not realise that there are laws that govern misuse of digital technologies. It is also important for them to understand the social and emotional consequences of actions like sexting. Drama and role play are good ways of exploring these issues.

Welsh Government

In May 2018, Wales Education Secretary Kirsty Williams announced major changes to Sex and Relationships Education in Wales (SRE) and its place in the curriculum. See here for recommendations on ‘The Future of the Sex and Relationships Education Curriculum in Wales -Recommendations of the Sex and Relationships Education Expert Panel”

Childline
Useful resources on sexting from Childline, including where to make reports on various social media platforms.
https://www.childline.org.uk/info-advice/bullying-abuse-safety/online-mobile-safety/sexting/

NSPCC
Good advice from the NSPCC on Sexting, including how to get explicit images removed.
https://www.nspcc.org.uk/preventing-abuse/keeping-children-safe/sexting/
and
https://www.childline.org.uk/info-advice/bullying-abuse-safety/online-mobile-safety/sexting/report-nude-image-online 

Advice for Parents

Nude Selfies (advice for parents/carers from CEOP)

NCA-CEOP have also created a series of 4 really useful videos called ‘Nude Selfies: What parents and carers need to know’, which help parents/carers understand why young people send nude selfies, how to talk to their child about them, what they should look out for and when to get help.

CEOP Campaign: Talk to your children about sex, relationships and the Internet

CEOP has produced a number of resources on the ThinkUKnow website to help parents, carers and professionals understand the issues in relation to sexting and online sexual exploitation, and help them educate and support their children, or the children they work with to keep safe.

ProMo-Cymru and YMCA Cardiff produced a video about Child Sexual Exploitation, with messaging from young people who have themselves experienced Child Sexual Exploitation.

Childnet have also created a resource called ‘Picture This’ to explore this issue and this can be downloaded from: http://www.childnet.com/resources/picture-this

Dealing with Sexting Incidents

In recent years, there has been a lot of discussion regarding not criminalising children for sexting incidents when no ‘coercion’ or malicious intent is involved. In light of these discussions, the UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS) have issued new guidance for schools and colleges in England and Wales for handling sexting incidents.

The South West Grid for Learning (SWGfL) and the UK Safer Internet Centre have also got guidance for schools on managing and responding to sexting incidents.

The South West Grid for Learning also have an excellent resource entitled ‘So You Got Naked Online’ for children, young people and parents. In their words ‘it offers advice and explores strategies to support the issues resulting from sexting incidents’.
http://www.saferinternet.org.uk/ufiles/Sexting%20Toolkit.pdf

Sextortion

Information from THORN in the US on Sextortion.

https://www.wearethorn.org/sextortion/

and

Research and useful articles on Sexting

A though provoking article from Australian research on how young people and sexting should be approached: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/oct/31/teens-should-be-educated-about-safer-sexting-not-just-abstinence-report-says and http://yfoundations.org.au/beyond-sexting-consent-harm-minimization-digital-sexual-cultures-2/ 

EU Research Project: SPIRTO: Self-Produced Images – Risk Taking Online:
http://www.spirto.health.ed.ac.uk

The NSPCC have also undertaken a piece of research on the issue of sexting, and their findings can be found here:
http://www.nspcc.org.uk/Inform/resourcesforprofessionals/sexualabuse/sexting-research-report_wdf89269.pdf

From the LSE: blogs.lse.ac.uk/mediapolicyproject/2012/05/15/sexting-the-risks-of-everyday-sexualised-communication-among-children

Sexting and Young People: The Parent’s View (Research document from UKCCIS and the UKSIC)

Other Resources

A young people’s guide to making positive relationships matter http://agenda.wales/